Savory Custards

Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com – * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/chawanmushi/ Over the years as I’ve watched the Iron Chef series (and it particular the original one), I noticed quite a few times the chefs were making savory custards, whether it be dashi-based, shanton-based or dairy-based (“royale”).  Having made the dashi and shanton versions, I began thinking about how I […]

Ron Siegel’s Iron Chef Grilled Lobster Salad

Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com – https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2021/11/18/a-technical-note-on-pan-grilling-lobster/ Ever since I made Chef Ron Siegel’s lobster soup seven years ago, I’d been wanting to attempt another of his lobster recipes. I’d been periodically revisting Chef Siegel’s grilled lobster dish recipe from his contest with Iron Chef Sakai (Iron Chef: The Official Book, p. 256) and its variant (a […]

A technical note on pan grilling lobster

Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com –* https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/crispy-skin-chicken-nobu-style/* https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2017/01/25/nobu-scampilangoustine-with-spicy-lemon-garlic-sauce/ So I found some packages of 4oz lobster tails in my freezer and wondered what to do with them. It then occurred to me that I could try pan grilling those lobster tails for supper. What I had in mind was a variant of the Nobu Now Ise Lobster […]

Curating the 2020 New Year’s Eve Dinner

Normally, I would have been going out to dinner for New Years Eve (aka “NYE”).  This is probably the first time in years that I’ve had to make this holiday meal. I think one of the things that went well was preparing the dessert cake the morning of the dinner and then getting it into […]

Christmas Omakase At Home 2017

Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com – * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2017/06/20/nobu-wests-dublin-bay-prawnlangoustine-cocktail/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/07/11/a-weekend-supper-of-tomato-salad-and-roasted-cornish-game-hen/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2014/10/04/nobu-sea-bass-dashi-ponzu/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/08/22/ming-tsais-aromatic-pressure-cooked-shortribs-with-root-vegetables/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2013/01/01/muratas-fruit-jelly-dessert/ So as I had observed earlier, I had to take a more realistic view of what I could accomplish since I didn’t have a lot of lead time to prepare.   As expected, the nobashi ebi yaki ‘cocktail’, tomato ‘salad’ and roast […]

Christmas Omakase At Home 2016

Previously, on tastingmenu.wordpress.com * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/08/11/6759/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/12/02/thanksgiving-omakase-at-home-2016/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/09/14/wonton-cornetscones/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/01/13/on-appetizer-soups/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/12/14/roasted-carrot-salad-with-curry-aigre-doux/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2016/12/09/monkfish-with-iron-chef-sakai-tomato-oil-sauce/ * https://tastingmenu.wordpress.com/2011/09/12/red-wine-braised-short-ribs-with-root-vegetables/ So at long last, my last major dinner of the year was here.  And what a whirlwind of preparation it was to get there.  I started making the cones a couple of days before the dinner and wiped […]

Christmas Lamb Chops And Ron Siegel Shallot ‘Marmalade’

So I wanted to do something different for Christmas dinner 2015.   Then I thought – lamb ribchops.  Ok – so lamb and beans was a classic pairing and I wanted to add a twist.  That twist came in the form of Chef Ron Siegel’s ‘Shallot Marmalade’.  The recipe for the shallot marmalade can be found […]